Spring is the season of growth and there’s no better way to grow personally and professionally than to increase your emotional intelligence (also known as your EQ).

Last month, Allison was invited to participate in a weekly “Coach Chat” session moderated by Carolyn Bergman, Senior Director of Alumni Career Services at Emory University. Nearly 150 alumni signed up to attend “Enhance Your EQ with the Skills of Improv”. Here’s what you missed.

First, Allison defined EQ and explained how it fits into personal and professional development. Next, the group reviewed the core competencies of EQ — self-awareness, self-management, social awareness and relationship management. To wrap up the session, they reviewed strategies for increasing your emotional intelligence with improv skills and other techniques.

The best part of the webinar was the audience questions! Below is a snapshot of our 5 favorite Q&A moments.

5 FAVE QUESTIONS

1. What are the challenges in using EQ in the workplace?
Remembering to utilize. Part of self-awareness is to be present. So just thinking about self-awareness makes us more aware! However, you must also remember to be aware of what is happening around you and what is happening with others.

2. How do I enhance the EQ of my employees?
Expose them to the concept. Introduce it to your team or colleagues through discussion, books, training, self-assessments and workshops. We can help with that.

3. How do I amplify my boss’s initiatives without looking like I’m kissing up?
Don’t just say “yes” to their ideas and leave it at that. Say “yes, and.” Take action on their ideas and build upon them.

4. How do I read my senior management team’s EQ?

The best way to read EQ is by observation, listening and being attuned to any of their emotional triggers and behavior. Notice how they respond in crises. That’s a key indicator.

5. How do I “observe myself” in the moment?

Remember to step back and allow sensory input to reach the rational part of your brain. Catch yourself in that moment when you are experiencing a certain emotion and ask, “why or what triggered that?”. Often we have a physical reaction to a certain emotion first – so be attuned to your own body and what it may be telling you about your emotional experience.

If you’d like to bring this Emotional Intelligence webinar to your group, email Allison at allison@dumoreimprov.com to set up a session. It’s great spring training for your team!

We’re so excited you’re here — we have big news! DuMore Improv is welcoming a fresh face to our team and announcing a brand new workshop. Bring it in, y’all.

First, we’d like to introduce you to our new facilitator, Jim Karwisch — check out his smiling mug at the bottom of this email. He’s a good friend, experienced improviser and amazing coach. Jim started improvising in 1991 and has been teaching improv since 2001. He worked for 13 years at a Fortune 500 financial institution, most recently as a Communications and Innovation specialist. Now he works full time as a coach and facilitator in Atlanta, GA and the Southeast. And we are super lucky to have him join our team because he’s brought us this…

Gamestorming! Whether you’ve worked with us before or are new to improv training, you’ll enjoy this eye-opening curriculum. Gamestorming with DuMore Improv lets your team examine challenges more deeply, explore new ideas, perform experiments and test hypotheses. Together we’ll generate surprising insights and results while infusing your team with energy and fun.

Here’s the magic. Gamestorming exercises help participants ditch the idea of “always doing things the same way” and learn new rules for interaction. Activities include questioning, structuring large diagrams, sketching ideas, fusing words and pictures together, and improvising — all designed to tackle a specific challenge and walk away with strategies to solve it.

We love talking about gamestorming (and Jim!) so drop a note to allison@dumoreimprov.com to learn more & find time for us to introduce this problem solving approach your team.

Let’s take the leap into 2015 together! This year we hope to make our monthly emails more helpful by sharing rock-solid, real-life examples of how you can use improv skills at work and at home. And we hope you’ll share your experiences with us, too!

This month, we challenge you to say YES to something that scares you. Something that makes your heart beat fast and gives you butterflies in your stomach. A feat that feels like jumping off a cliff.

Last week, Elizabeth did something that’s been scaring her for 5+ years. She tried open mic improv poetry. Yes, it’s as scary as it sounds. Putting your name in a hat. Standing at a microphone in front of strangers. Asking for a topic. And blurting out a poem that you make up as you go. It was terrifying. And it was awesome. Like jumping into the deep end of the pool and making it to the side safely. Whew!

Doing something scary makes you feel alive. So try it this month. It can be as bold as sky diving or asking your boss for a raise. Or as simple as sending your dinner back to the kitchen because your steak wasn’t cooked right. It doesn’t matter what it is. As long as it makes you breathe a little faster and feel a whoosh of relief when it’s over.

https://i1.wp.com/www.dumoreimprov.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/cliffjump.jpg?fit=640%2C480480640dumorehttp://www.dumoreimprov.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/dumorelogo-01-1.pngdumore2015-01-21 08:42:562015-01-22 01:51:23Say yes to something that scares you

Merry Whatever! Awkward office parties, tense family festivities and the same list of New Year’s resolutions you’ve made for the last 10 years can make even the perkiest elf feel a little Grinchy. Save your holiday season with 6 improv survival techniques from the DuMore Improv gang.

Get to work on your amazing cat costume. Then post your costume photos on our Facebook page to let us all know how it turned out. Meow!

STAY SCARY,
Allison & Elizabeth

Don’t forget the classic Grumpy Cat costume.

https://i1.wp.com/www.dumoreimprov.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Cat_Stevens_costume.jpg?fit=481%2C469469481dumorehttp://www.dumoreimprov.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/dumorelogo-01-1.pngdumore2014-10-26 18:13:442014-12-24 15:51:09It's time for a trick & a treat...

https://i2.wp.com/www.dumoreimprov.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/August_Sunday_Summer.jpg?fit=612%2C612612612dumorehttp://www.dumoreimprov.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/dumorelogo-01-1.pngdumore2014-08-19 13:56:042014-08-19 13:56:04What I Like About August Is...

Summer’s officially here and it’s the perfect time to plan a team building event for your group. Curious how to convince your boss or leadership team that it’s a good idea? Send them these articles that prove it!

Do you have a raging case of March Madness, Spring Fever or the Irish Flu (aka St. Patrick’s Day)? Here at DuMore Improv HQ we found 3 more things to get excited about this month. Add these items to the top of your to-do list for March.

– DIG South – taking place April 9-13 in Charleston, SC. DuMore Improv is presenting our “So, What’s Your Story?” workshop about the art of storytelling for business. And we’re going to have a rockin’ refreshment booth in the concourse, a giant wall of innovation and new interactive activities every 30 minutes. Intrigued? We are too! If you are in the area, come hang out with us.

3. Book your fall workshops now!

Our fall calendar is already filling up with higher ed orientation workshops and team building sessions. If you are considering a back-to-school or post-summer session, we’d love to get you on our schedule as soon as possible. Call or email us to discuss workshop topics and dates.

Okay, we usually don’t get all crazy for kittens, but since it’s Valentine’s Day weekend and we’ve been thinking about partnerships – we couldn’t resist. Repeat after me. Awwwwwwwww. We thought this would be a great time to celebrate partners of all kinds. We’ve been working with some amazing business buddies over the past few months and we want to show them some love with a little shout out.

Candid Partners – Stacy Brees, Merrick Olives and the entire super smart crew at Candid Partners knows how to get it done. Not only are they great at management and technology consulting, but they totally understand how incorporating emotional intelligence and improv skills training with DuMore Improv helps set the stage for their client’s success. If you need a problem-solving partner, you will love these guys and gals.

Laura Camacho & Jocelyn Ring – There’s nothing more fun than partnering with other savvy women to help businesses improve the way they develop and communicate strategies. That’s why we’ve teamed up with Laura of the Mixonian Institute and Jocelyn of The Ring Effect to create a new workshop called Message & Mindset: The Building Blocks of Proactive Communication. This session combines all of our superpowers. Improv + Communication Skills + Strategy Visualization = KAPOW! Let us know if you are interested in learning more about this special offering.

DIG South – We’ve had a huge crush on the folks at DIG South since we first met them last April at the Southeast’s most awesome Interactive Festival ever. We’re partnering with them again this year to craft a crazy interactive improv presentation, a totally rad refreshment booth and who knows what else. Hats off to them for always listening to our wild ideas and saying “yes, and!”

Drop us a line (or a Valentine) if you’d like to partner with us in 2014. Simply reply to this email and we’ll get something started.

Are you still looking for the perfect New Year’s Resolution? Try raising your EQ! No gym membership or exercise required. Just 3 easy steps to improve your emotional intelligence and up your Emotional Quotient. And if you’re wondering “what the heck is EQ?”, here’s a quick primer. According to Harvard theorist Howard Gardner, “Your EQ is the level of your ability to understand other people, what motivates them and how to work cooperatively with them.” These abilities can be enhanced through improv training and by applying these 3 tips to your daily life and work.

1) Listening & Observing – The next time you have a conversation with someone, listen closely to what they are saying and watch their nonverbal body language. The more you do this, the better you’ll get at understanding other people’s emotions.

2) Know Your Triggers – Pay attention to situations that cause you to have a certain stress emotion. Just being self-aware of these triggers will help you manage your own emotions at work or home.

3) Watch Your Self-Talk – How many negative words do you say to yourself each day? Replace those with positive words and you’ll see a big shift in your attitude and emotional state.

Improv your EQ with DuMore Improv! Allison is heading to California this week to teach Improv & Emotional Intelligence at UC Berkeley. If you think your team could use an EQ boost, contact us to book a session for your group. It’s a great way to get in the right frame of mind for 2014.